Culture, not Race
by gooogley
Summary: What if there were more subspecies of humans? What if instead of humans only existing on Earth, the Protheans had instead performed experiments on them in the Sol system, creating multiple offshoots of Homo Sapien?


During the waning millenium of Prothean Reign, a solar system is discovered, containing a primitive mammalian society, what would be come to be known as neanderthal, or homo neanderthalensis. With their rapid breeding and growth capabilities, and the fact that they were a primitive race, they decided that they were the perfect lab rats. Turning the entire area into a testing ground, they used the neanderthals for multiple experiments, ranging from genetic, social, cybernetic, mental, and much more. When the reapers had arrived, they killed the protheans, reducing them to ash, but left behind the neanderthals, as they only saw primitives, now differing from each other. It was expected that these homo neanderthalenis would eventually die out, cut off from their native environment. However, mother nature is stubborn, and life finds a way.

Many neanderthals would die out, but some where enhanced by what had been done to them, and would survive, sometimes even passing on their new abilities to their off spring. Eventually, with time, they began to form the new subspecies of the new race, human.

Homo Sapien - Basic humanity. Evolved from neanderthals, they are the basic template of all humans. They reproduce sexually, and are an omnivorous bipedal race of mammals. When the Protheans discovered these primitives, they had altered them with higher intelligence to make them easier to maintain. With an average life span of 70-80 years, their ability to think creatively combined with stubborn nature has allowed them to rise to the top of the food chain on Earth. Their stubbornness, however, is also a hindrance, as a young race, they are impatient, and often charge ahead reckless and without thought.

Homo Spiritus - Ghost humanity. On a prothean space station Metanus Prime X which orbits Venus, neanderthals where subjected to nanobotic swarms, converting cells to nanomachines. When the protheans died, the neanderthals became more ghost like, forming physical apparitions that are otherworldly. This allows them to theoretically live forever, and gives them abilities similar to that of a ghost, from intangibility to telekinesis but at the cost of attachment, as these humans lack a physical body to enjoy the same things most organics can enjoy. They reproduce asexually, spawning other ghosts.

Homo Collego - Collective Humanity. Located on Pluto, the protheans had fiddled with single mind melds and telapathy, altering the lab rats with mind alterations. This resulted in the development of 300 humans with telepathic powers. These humans, utilizing their telepathy, managed to assimilate each other, forming a single consciousness, a hivemind. These humans reproduce sexually, although every child is born a member of the collective, already connected to the entire consciousness. This allows these humans to coordinate and work with absolute efficiency, however, they unfortunately lack social skills found in other humans.

Homo Aquata - Aquatic humanity. After the protheans converted the Jupiter moon Europa into a water world capable of studying multiple underwater life forms, it is also home to humans who are very adept in water. They are excellent swimmers , and are extremely smart, the large diet of fish, squid, and other ocean life forms contributing to a large intake of Omega 3 fatty acids, allowing for greater brain development. Their larger use of brain capacity has made them extremely intelligent, thus the most technologically advanced of all subspecies of humans. Most of civilization is underwater or floating island cities, however, the few islands are used as fortresses and as bases. Unfortunately, they develop as more peaceful and artistic, their military stagnant.

Homo Machina - Cybernetic humanity. Bred on Mars, these humans are the result of being bred and cybernetically enhanced. Originally in an attempt to create the perfect slave soldier, without the protheans, these humans are augmented and equipped with multiple features to aid in combat. They lack normal reproductive methods, instead cloned and constructed in tubes, growing up with implants at a young age. However, with the loss of their original masters, combined with a modified adrenal gland, they are very hostile and constantly feuding, with multiple clans on Mars, all vying for control.

Homo Imperator - Strategic humanity. Brought to the Mars moon Phobos, the protheans had used it to study the perfect tactician. Using human babies grown on Europa, they isolated them on the small moon and exposed them to prothean war culture and tactics. These humans, once developed, are cybernetically implanted with wireless communication and mind palace to effectively plan and coordinate strategy, and link with Homo Machina to effectively lead the Prothean's slave armies. Unfortunately, the reapers were killed before they could be implemented, and they remain in stasis, all 3000 dormant waiting for someone to control.

Homo Umbra - Dark humanity. Raised in the dark environment of the moon, they have been genetically enhanced with superior sense of hearing. Without the abductors, these humans have carved a deep, tunneling empire in the dark moon, able to survive in the almost non existent atmosphere, and subsisting on chemio synthetic autotrophs and insects that are raised in these tunnels. Unfortunately, due to lack of atmosphere and living in dark tunnels, these humans are nearly blind and vulnerable to UV radiation, their pale skin extremely vulnerable to nearly all forms of light, with exception of fluorescent light.

Homo Solaris - Sun humanity. When the protheans developed Mercury, the high exposure of sunlight was seen as a positive way to develop as a resource for unlimitted solar power. However, they didn't want to risk themselves of excess UV radiation, so instead, they used their labrats to develop a subspecies of humans which could function in the UV irradiated planet. High temperatures and UV waves have given these humans a reliance on radiation and sunlight and high temperatures. They in turn grow stronger when exposed to sunlight, and can utilize photosynthesis. Following the disappearance of the protheans, they maintain the large solar collecters to build tall cities, but cannot survive extended periods without light.

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Also, if you have any suggestions or ideas on other type of subspecies of human, please let me know.


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